The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume II — Page 166
Seal of the Prophets - Volume II 166 were confronted with delicate situations, but in the battle of Badr, the spine of the Quraish had been broken, which no surgical operation could permanently repair thereafter. As far as the number of casualties was concerned, this was no great defeat. The death of seventy or seventy-two warriors for a people like the Quraish, can in no way be deemed a national devastation. In the battle of Uḥud, this was the number of Muslim casualties. However, this loss did not even prove to be a temporary hindrance in the victorious pathway of the Muslims. Why then was the battle of Badr dubbed Yaumul-Furqān ? In response to this question, the best answer is in the following words of the Holy Qur’ān: “Verily, on that day, the root of the disbelievers was cut off. ” 1 In other words, the blow of the battle of Badr hit the root of the disbelievers, and it was shattered to pieces. If this very blow had struck the branches instead of the root, irrespective of how great a loss it would have inflicted, this loss would have been nothing compared to the one actually incurred. However, this blow to the root turned this lush green tree to a pile of coal, in a matter of moments. Only those branches survived which attached themselves to the other tree, before drying away. Therefore, in the field of Badr, the loss of the Quraish was not measured by the number of men who died, rather, by the people who died. When we cast a glance upon the casualties of the Quraish from this perspective, there remains no room for even the slightest doubt or uncertainty, that in Badr, the root of the Quraish was truly cut off. ‘Utbah, Shaibah, Umayyah bin Khalf, Abū Jahl, ‘Uqbah bin Abī Mu‘īṭ and Naḍr bin Ḥārith, etc. , were the moving spirit of the Quraish. This spirit flew off from the Quraish in the valley of Badr forever, and they were left like a lifeless body. It is for this reason that the battle of Badr has been given the name of Yaum-e-Furqān. Even the Quraish themselves were able to measure this loss very well. As such, mourning the casualties of Badr, a renowned poet of the Quraish states, and how wonderful indeed: ٌوَلَو ْ لَا یَوْم ُ بَدْر ٍ لَم ْ یَسُوْدُوْا اَلَا قَد ْ سَاد َ بَعْدَھُم ْ رِجَال 1 Al-Anfāl (8:8) [Publishers]